1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a scheme for detecting fraudulent activity related to fuel dispensing transactions, and more particularly to a methodology designed to check independently for fraud without relying on a fuel dispensing meter by relying on flow rate data.
2. Description of the Related Art
Fuel dispensing transactions are a somewhat opaque process to most customers. The customer drives up, makes a fuel grade selection and dispenses fuel into a vehicle or approved container. When the fuel dispenser shuts off, the customer may check the gauge and see that he owes some amount of money for some amount of fuel dispensed. Alternatively, the customer may only have limited funds and may terminate the transaction upon reaching the budgeted amount as displayed on the face of the fuel dispenser. The financial side of the transaction is completed and the customer drives off.
Behind the scenes, the fuel dispenser is keeping careful track of the amount of fuel dispensed so that it may be displayed to the customer as well as providing a running tally of how much it will cost the customer to purchase the fuel already dispensed. This is typically achieved with a flow meter and a pulser. When a known quantity of fuel has passed through the flow meter, the pulser generates a pulse. Typically, 1000 pulses are generated per gallon of fuel dispensed. The number of pulses may be processed by an internal microprocessor to arrive at an amount of fuel dispensed and a cost associated therewith. These numbers are displayed to the customer to aid him in making fuel dispensing decisions.
Customers of fuel dispensers expect honest and accurate calculations of the cost of fuel actually dispensed into their vehicle and rely on the fuel dispenser display to provide the correct figures. However, unscrupulous individuals may, with little effort, modify the pulser and other internal electronics within the fuel dispenser to provide inaccurate readings, in effect, artificially accelerating the perceived rate of fuel dispensing and charging the consumer for fuel that was not actually dispensed. The mechanisms normally responsible for detecting and preventing this sort of fraud are often the mechanisms that are modified or replaced in the process, completely circumventing any fraud prevention device.
Thus, there remains a need in the field of fuel dispensing to provide an method to detect fraud within fuel dispensing transactions and provide the appropriate alerts to rectify the situation.